Blind stitch attachment for sewing machines



Sept. 22, 1953 H. H. RUSSELL 2,552,796

BLIND STITCH ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Jan. 12, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l v I T;

ATTORN EY6 Sept. 22, 1953 H. H. RUSSELL 2,652,796

BLIND STITCH ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Jan. 12, 1951 v v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ne 49 lg INVENTOR 53 53 BY MM; ATTORNEYS price.

Patented Sept. 22, 1953 BLIND STITGHF ATTACHMENT FOE MACHINES Herbert H. Buissell, New Haven, Qonn.,, assignor o The Greist Manufacturing company; New Haven, Conn... a. corporation of. Connecticut Appliication January 12, 1951, Serial No. 205,800

7 Claims. (Cl. 112-160) This invention relates, to. a. blind stitch attachmerit for sewing machines, and more particularl to an at achment which may be. readily applied to the ordinary household sewing machine. in. place of the. usual presser foot, and which during the operation of the machine will efiect a number of series of stitches in, a straight line,

and. between two successive series of such straight-line stitches effect a zigzag stitch at one side of the line of stitches. v

p In certain instances it is desirable to perform what is termed blind stitching, such as when a hem is made in a garment. To do this a straight. line of stitching is made on the wrong-side of thematerial which does not pass through to the outside, and at intervals a stitch is made at one side of this line. which does pass through to the outside or catch the material of the hem so as to hold the hem in place. Such a stitchv can be performed by What is usually termed a zigzag stitch provided that. a number oi straight stitches is made between thezigzag stitches.

The. present invention. relates. to a simple and eiiective attachment to theordinary sewing ma chine by; which blind stitching, such as, described above, may be readily performed. The attachment is designed tobe secured to the usual household sewing machine, and it is desirable, there fore, that it be. simple in construction, and that. it. be of. relatively light. weight. and economically made so. that it may be sold at a reasonable 0 As illustrated, the device comprises a frame to which is pivoted a lever having a cloth-engaging footat. i s. iorward end, thisfoot engaging the I cloth. so as to move it laterally of the line. of stitching when the. foot is moved laterally about its pivot. The device is so. constructed that the. cloth-engaging foot will, for a, seriesof stitches. be restrained a inst movement, and will. then be. given an oscillating. movement or a lateral and. return movement soas to make at least one. stitch at one. side of the line of stitches previously formed. By p perly folding the material p n. which the operation is being performed, this will. result in a blind stitching operation upon. a hem, for example.

One obiect of the invention is to provide. a sewin machine attachment capable of effecting a blind stitch, which may be readily attached to and, used upon, the ordinary household sewing machine.

A further obiect of the invention is to provide a blind stitch attachment for se ing machines of simple construction which will at the same. time be efficient in operation.

still another: object of. the invention i to pro-.- vide. a blind stitch attachment for Sewing ma-- chines having, a pivoted lever'provided at its fore ward end with a cloth-engaging foot, and having novel. and simple mechanism for efiecting oscil-i lation of the. cloth-holding foot about the pivot of the lever at the. proper time in the operation of. the device.

A still further object of the invention is to provide. a blind stitch attachment for sewing machines of the character described which should be operated by means of a fork arm attached to the usual needle bar so that the oscillations of the cloth-engaging foot. will be efiected in timed relation to the operation of the needle bar.

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In. the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a blind stitch attachment embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the device;

Fig. 4 is a rear elevational View;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view on line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 but showing the cloth-engaging foot in another position;

Fig. 8 is a top plan view of a piece of material showing the stitch effected by the attachment;

and

Fig. 9 is a sectional view on line 9-9 of Fig. 8

s a pair of upstanding parallel side walls II and I2, which frame serves as a support for the working parts of the device. An adapter 13 is secured to the wall I2; this adapter having an opening opening 2!]- so that it may be moved laterally and still accommodate the needle of the sewing machine within this opening.

Secured-upon the foot l9- is a cloth guide which like 27 secured to the member 25 so that the guide 2| may be adjusted laterally of the foot and frictionally maintained by' the rivet in any adjusted position. A linger piece 28 is provided by which the cloth guide may be shifted laterally of the foot l9, and the part24 is also provided with a pair of reversely folded fingers 29 which extend below the member and grip the underside thereof owing to the resiliency of the spring metal of which this guide is made.

A supporting plate 3i rests upon the upper edges of theframe' members H and I2, this plate being provided with openings or notches 32 which receive lugs 32 upstanding from the members i l and i2, and these lugs may be peened over the edges of the notches so as to hold the plate Si in place. Rotatably secured to this plate, and depending downwardly therefrom, is a shaft 33, the shaft having threaded therein a screw 34 having a bearing portion 35 rotatably mounted in an opening in the plate 3i. Secured to the screw 3% to rotate therewith above the plate 3i is a ratchet wheel 36.

With the above construction, it will be apparent that as the ratchet wheel 35 is rotated, the shaft 33 which is also secured to the screw 34 will also be rotated. As the shaft 33 is rotated, by mechanism hereinafter described, in a counter-clockwise direction, referring to Figs. 2 and 6, it will be found'advantageous to provide the screw 3% with 1eft-hand threads so that its rotation will not tendto unscrew it from the shaft 33.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 5, 6 and '7, it will be noted that the lever !B is provided with an opening or recess 38. Projecting inwardly from the edges of this recess are two projections or abutments 38 and 453, each of these aeutments havin a cam face designated at' il and Q2, and the shaft 33 which extends downwardly between the frame members H and I2 is provided with a pair of downwardly projecting pins 43 and it which are diametrically opposite each other, and which extend into the opening 38 to engage a ainst the cam faces 4| and 42 of the abutments 3-9 and 46 as the shaft 33 is rotated. The abutments 39 and ts are not diametrically opposed, and it will be seen from Y that the pin it will engage the cam face 4! of the projection prior to the engagement of the in it with the face 42 of the projection ill. This will effect lateral movement of the lever l8 about its pivot in one direction as shown in Fig. 7, and upon a successive rotational movement of the shaft 33, the other pin will strike the cam face 42 of the projection 46, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 6, and move the lever is in the other direction or upwardly as shown in this figure.

A fiat sprin member 35 is secured at one of its ends, as at ll, to the frame member H, and at its free end, this spring bears against an edge portion of the lever it so as to normally hold this lever in the position shown in Fig. 6, which is the position for the straight stitching operations. This prevents play of the lever is when the pins 43 and 44 are not in engagement with either of the projections 39 and 4!). The shaft 33 is held at its lower end by a plug 48 secured in the base [0 and extending upwardly through the opening 38 in the lever to be received in a recess 49 of the shaft.

Rotatably mounted upon a pin 50 secured to the frame member H, as shown more especially in Figs. 1 and 4, is a second ratchet wheel 5|. Also rockably mounted upon this pin is the usual fork arm 52 having a forked end 53 designed to be secured to the needle bar of the sewing machine so as to be actuated thereby in a wellknown manner in a rocking movement about its pivot.

Pivoted to the fork arm 52 is a pawl 54, this pawl, when in the position shown in full lines in Fig. 1, being urged toward the ratchet wheel 5! by the spring 55. The head or free end portion of thepawl is so constructed that when the latter is moved to the dotted-line position shown in Fig. 1, the spring will engage over the curved end portion of the pawl and hold it releasably in this dotted-line position in which it is not in engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel 5i As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the pawl 54 engages one edge, namely the rear edge, of the teeth of the ratchet wheel 5! while the forward edges of these teeth engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel so that the latter is driven from the wheel 5!. Reverse movement of the ratchet wheel 5! or movement in a counter-clockwise direction, as shown in Fig. l, is prevented by a holding pawl in the form of a resilient spring member 56, secured at its lower end to the frame, and having on its upper end a laterally extending tooth 5'! to engage the rear side of the teeth of the ratchet wheel 5| From the above, it will be obvious that as the fork arm 52 is reciprocated by the needle bar, the ratchet wheel 51 will be moved in a step-bystep movement in a clockwise direction by the pawl 55, the movements of the ratchet wheel takin place on the upward stroke of the lever 52; the ratchet wheel 55 will be idle during the downward stroke of the fork arm 52 at the time the needle enters the material which is being sewed. Step-by-step movement of the ratchet Wheel 5! also effects step-by-step movement of the ratchet wheel 36 in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 2, and likewise effects similar step-by-step rotational movement of the shaft 33.

It will be apparent that as long as the pins 43 and 44 move in the unobstructed portions of the opening 38, no movement of the lever I8 will take place, and straight-line stitching will be effected as shown at 5B in Fig. 8. This is the position of the parts shown in Fig. 6. Upon continued rotation of the shaft 33, the pin 43 will strike the cam surface 4!, and move the lever [8 to the position shown in Fig. '7. This movement will, of course, occur on the upward stroke of the fork arm, and upon the next downward stroke, a side stitch will be made at one side of the line of stitching 58, as indicated at 59. Upon the next upward stroke of the needle bar, the pin 44 will strike the cam surface 42 and return the lever l8 to the position shown in Fig. 6, thus effecting the first stitch of the next series of straightline stitches. The lever [8 will remain in this position until the pin 44 engages the cam surface 4|, at which time the lever will be moved to effect another side stitch. Thus, it will be seen that the attachment will effect a number of series of straight-line stitches with an offset or side stitch between these straight-line stitches.

In a blind stitching operation, the cloth is folded as shown in Fig. 9, the upper surface of the upper fold BI being the wrong side of the ma-- terial. The straight line of stitching is shown at 58, and the offset or side stitch which catches the hem is shown at 59. After the work has been completed, the fold 6| is turned over to the dotted-line position shown in Fig. 9 so that the right side of the goods will be exposed at the outside of the hem. When the pawl 54 is in the dottedline position shown in Fig. 1, there will be no movement of the shaft 33, and straight-line stitching may be effected by the attachment.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that it is not to be limited to all of the details shown, but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit of the invention and within the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a clothengaging foot at its forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame and connected to said shaft to rotate the'latter in a step-by-step movement, abutment means on said lever, and means on the lower end of said shaft to engage said abutment means and shift said lever about its pivot, and a spring acting between a part of the frame and said lever to urge the latter in one direction about its pivot.

2. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a clothengaging foot at its forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame and connected to said shaft to rotate the latter in a step-by-step movement, said lever having an opening therein, spaced abutments on, and projecting inwardly from, the periphery of said opening, and said shaft being provided with spaced downwardly projecting members on its lower end extending into said opening to engage one and then the other of said abutments upon successive rotational steps of movement of said shaft.

3. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a clothengaging foot atits forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame and connected to said shaft to rotate the latter in a step-by-step movement, said lever having an opening therein, spaced abutments on, and projecting inwardly from, the periphery of said opening, and said shaft being provided with spaced downwardly projecting members on its lower end, extending into said opening to engage one and then the other of said abutments upon reciprocating movements of said fork arm.

4. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a clothengaging foot at its forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame, a ratchet wheel on the upper end of said shaft, a pawl carried by the fork arm, a second ratchet wheel rotatably mounted on the frame, one edge of each of the teeth of said last-named ratchet wheel engaged by the pawl, and the other edge thereof engaging the teeth of the first-named ratchet wheel, and connecting means between said shaft and said lever to oscillate the latter upon rotation of the shaft.

5. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a cloth-engaging foot at its forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame and connected to said shaft to rotate the latter in a step-by-step movement, a pair of spaced abutment means on said lever, and pins projecting downwardly from the lower end of said shaft to engage said abutment means and effect oscillation of said lever, the spacing of said abutment means being such that only one is engaged by said pins at any one time.

6. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a cloth-engaging foot at its forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame and connected to said shaft to rotate the latter in a step-byestep movement, and connecting means between said shaft and said lever to oscillate the latter about its pivot, and yieldable means acting between the lever and frame to resist movement of the lever in one direction.

'7. A blind stitch attachment for sewing machines comprising a frame, a lever pivoted to said frame on a vertical axis and having a cloth-engaging foot at its forward end, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably carried by the frame above said lever, a fork arm pivoted to the frame, a ratchet wheel on the upper end of said shaft, a pawl carried by the fork arm, a second ratchet wheel rotatably mounted on the frame, one edge of each of the teeth of said last-named ratchet wheel engaged by the pawl, and the other edge thereof engaging the teeth of the first-named ratchet wheel, connecting means between said shaft and said lever to oscillate the latter upon rotation of the shaft, and means for holding said paw1 in inoperative position.

HERBERT H. RUSSELL.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 456,354 Bulley July 21, 1891 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 438,557 Great Britain Nov. 19, 1935 655,220 Germany Jan. 11, 1938 

